Float controlled drinking fountain



Sept. 26, 1933. D. H. HILL 1,928ll03 FLOAT CONTROLLED DRINKING FOUNTAIN2 Sheets-Shet 1 Filed Feb. 24, 1932 Sept. 26, 1933.

D. H. HILL FLOATv CONTROLLED DRiNKING FOUNTAIN Filed Feb. 24. 1932 2Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Sept. 26, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT": OFFICE" jj: l 1,928,10 j Q Q FLOAT corrmoim'an,imnqiglnqd FoUN'rAnv. Dewey H. mu,Kokoino, Ind., assig imr m G1oiie American Corporation, Kokomo, Ind.,acor-f poration of Indiana 1 1 p i 7 Application February 24, 1932.Serial No. 594,871 a fromvthe well to facilitate the refilling.

10 Claims Q (Cl.- 119-18) My invention relates to the classof drinkingfounts in which the water is automatically-maintained at a given heightin a well, and in which the water-supplying reservoir can be detachedFounts of this 'class-havinglong been used in various sizes by raisersof chicks, larger poultry and evenh0gs;-and with the smaller types (inwhich a so. called Mason jar served as the water 10 receptacle) it iscustomary to attach the well or base portion while inverted to thefilled jar, after which the jar and well assembly is turned to itsnormal position.

With larger. sizes, the

fount is too great topermit a similar procedure. I Hence it has beencustomary to provide the mouth end of the receptacle with a relativelysmall .discharge outlet controlled by a spring-pressed valve which has aprojecting valve stem disposed for engaging the bottom of the well toopen the valve when the receptacle'is placed in its normal position onthe well. In practice, this arrangement has the serious objection thatthe valve stem also projects downward from the receptacle whenever thelatter has its outlet directed downward, so that the receptacle cannotthen be set down on any fiat surface without causing-its contents to runout. Moreover, both the projecting valve stem and also the projectingoutlet neck (which is usually provided for limiting the rise of thewaterin the well to a level somewhat lower than the adjacent end of thereceptacle) are apt to be damaged by the rough handling which farm handsgive to such a container.

be set down freely on any, floor or ground with-' out causing liquid todischarge; and in which the reservoir can readily be refilled from thetop, either when detached or while still in its normal position withrespect to the well, so that no in- 1 ,verting of the reservoir isrequired at any-time.

In addition, my invention aims to provide a valve arrangement requiringno spring; which valve arrangement will automatically close thedischarge outlet of the receptacle when the-latter is lifted off the.well, open this outlet when the receptacle is set down on an empty orinadequate- I r 1y filled well, and close the outlet whenever the weightof theas'sembled Moreover, the- 35 valve closing spring, sometimescatches or otherwaterin the lwell'reaohesa certain level; More-.' f h gI over, my invention aims to provide ,a simple and cheaply manufacturedliquid controllarrangement J 1 y for these purposes, and one which canbe attached I with equal facility to receptacles of differing sizes.

. Moreparticularly; my invention aims to provide aliquid fount or theclass describe d n which all of the valve'mechanism portions below thelower end of the res'ervoir are laterally, housed by' aI reservoircasingextension which. reaches below these ports andprevents such parts f io meven touching the: ground or other floor' fon whichthe detachedreservoir may be set.. Furthermore, my

invention aims to provide a f liquid icontrol arrangement in whichtheweight of a float con-j.

the reservoir, in which a check-waive ballis disposedfor closing thisoutlet," in which the raise 'ing of, the fioat by waterin thewell'efiectsb'otha closing of the said outlet and. a 'lifting of jthecheck valve ball; and in which the well hasa portion disposed ffor.limiting the downward movement of the floatto a position in which the;

said outlet is open.

. sun further ar dfmoreidetailed objects will the accompanyingdrawingain which Fig. 1,is a central and vertical section through" a" drinkingfountain embodying my invention; with the fioat in the maximum raisedposition which it shuts 01f aiurther flow of watersirom the reservoir tothe pan or well. j i I Fig. 2 is a section similar to thelower-portionof Fig, 1, but taken when the pan and the'reservoir areboth empty. a i v Fig. 3 is a central and vertical section through thelower por'tion of the reservoir when lifted off the pan. I

Fig. 4' is an enlargedperspective view of the. lever through which thefioat operates-the stem of the lower. valve memberi Figs. 5, 6 and 7 areenlarged sections of the valve assembly and parts adjacentto' thelatter,

takenjin thesame plane as Fig. land showing the parts respectively inpositionscorresponding to jFigi 1, 2 and 3. I I

j Fig- 8 is a side elevation taken iromthe line.

8",8ofFig.6.v

Fig. 9"is 'a horizontal section along-the line 9 9 of Fig.6, showing.the lev er as positioned during the-assembling of the valve mechanism.

Fig. .10 is a/central and vertical section through the pan and the lowerportion of .reservoir,"sl1'ow- I =ing another embodiment ofmy'invention. j

70', tinually tends to open the; discharge outlet of Fig. 11 is afragmentary elevation, looking to-' ward the right from the line li 11of Fig. 10.. In the embodiment of Figs. 1 to 9, the reservoir of mydrinking fountain comprises an upright cylindrical wall 1 on the upperedge of which a cover 2 is detachablyseated, and a bottom 3 spacedupwardly from the lower'end' of the wall 1 byadistance considerablygreater than the maximum depth to which water is to be ad.-

mitted'to the pan 4 on the bottom of which pan the saidlower wall end isnormally seated. This.

plane of the lever bottom 13.

pan is of larger diameter than. the reservoir so as to present anannular water-exposing trough around the lower portion of theriser walllof the reservoir, which wall is centered on the? pan by an annular riserformation '5 on thebottom of the pan, and which Wall has apertures Gnearits lower edge. f

The elevated reservoir bottom has an aperture '7 through which atubularvalv'ebodyg extends,- the upright bore 9 of thisl'body affordingthefoutlet 'jpassage through which the water discharges from thereservoir into the pan. QThe'dis'charge of waterthrough'the bore 9 iscontrolled by two superposedvalve-members, the upper ofifwhich isavalve'ball l0- housed by'the upper portion-of thesaid bore and adapted.tobe rolled by gravity to its seating position or" Figs. 1 and in Vwhich-position-it closes the upper'end of the smaller diametered lowerbore portion!) A.

- This lower bore portion desirably tapers upvl ardlyat the same angleas the tapering upper end 11A of a stem-like lower valve member '11which 'is raised and lowered by a float 1'2 dis'f posedi within theportion of the riser wall 1 of the reservoir which is below thereservoir bottom 3.. 'To afford this motion, 'thedrawings show the float(which may bef'a hollow metal cylinder) as welded atits top toone end ofa floatlever,

which leveris pivoted ona horizontal pivot pin 14 spanning the oppositesides 15 A oija supporting member fastenedto the reservoir bottom 3,

the said pin being desirably a cotter pin.-

As here shown, the lever includesa flatbottom portion 13 and riser webs13 A extending upwardly fromeach side edge; of the said bottom 7 A jportion, through which-webs the pivoting pin .14 extends, the spread" ofthese webs being .bottom13 to support the lower'va-lve member. To permita convenientassembly, the part of lever and having. at one end a slotenlargement 16 A of larger diameter than the main portion of thelowervalve 12,. A

As here shown, the supporting member 15 includes a bottom portion 15 Bconnecting the riser sideslfi'A and having at the end nearest to thefloat a riser web 15 C of such aheight as to engage the bottom 13 of thefloat lever before any part of the float reaches the level of the lowerend of the reservoir casing l, as shown in Figs.

7 and 3. The supporting member also includes J top webs 15 D whichextend toward each other thewelds W in Fig. 6. I With the supportingmember thus constructed, this 'canlee-positionedagainst the reservoir}valve 11 can be slid up through thisperforation extend acrossthe bore ofthe latter atsome dis- ,tothe pan.

and are welded'to the reservoir bottom 3,,asby' bottomand haveits'topwebs welded to that bottom, after which the valve body is alsowelded to the said bottom as shown in Fig. 5. The lever until J itscontracted portion comes in the general 1 The lever thenslid (to theposition shown in -I1ull-,-lines in Fig. 9) toaline the perforations inits riser webs 13 -A with corresponding perfora- V 'tions' in theriser-webs 15A of the supporting member as shown in dotted lines in Fig.9,.after which the pivoting pin 14 is inserted. A stop cotter 1-8 isalso inserted in the valve member to.

tanceabove the normal top of the check valve ball 10; thereby completingthe assembly e When the empty reservoir is lifted off the pan 'or well,as by means of the usual bails 19 of Figi-l,

the float drops to the position of Fig 3 irr'which the float clearsany-horizontal surface on which the reservoir may beset, and inwhich-'theflower valve 11 is moved downwardly to a position? (enlargedin Fig; 7) permitting the check valve ball lOlto closezthe upper endor"thevalve outletf9'A. The reservoir canthen belledffrom its top,

carried back to the pan, and be setijinto its-yep- ,erative position onthe pan without'inverting the reservoir; all'without spilling any water;I

When the reservoir is thus replaced on the-pan;

the'engagement of'the fioat'with a riser formation on thepan (here shownas a bottom boss 4 A) raisesthe lower valve member. tothe mid= heightposition ofFigs. 2 and Shin which the tip portion 1 1' A ofithatvalveraises the check 1 15 valve 10 out of its closure position butstill leaves considerable clearance between the said tip portion and theoutlet ,bore-'9: A of the-valve body. Water then-flows through thisvalve body into the pan until the'level of the'water in the pan issufficient for raising the :float to the position of Figs. 1 and 5 inwhich thelowervalve'memb'er closes the valveoutlet 9 A and shutsoff theflow from the reservoir. Then whenever enough water. has been consumedfrom the outer or tr'oughpo rtion of the'pan to lower the liquid levelinthe pan, materially,-- the valve ispartially reopened (as in-Fig. 6)to admit a further supply of water Thus, my simple and inexpensivedouble valve arrangementautomatically controls the level of the liquidin the pan and also controls the discharge outlet of the reservoir sothatthis can beffreely and speedily'handled' for a convenient refillingwithout any manual manipulation of valve parts, the stop c'otterlSbeingprovided merely'to prevent the check ball from rolling outdet'ails'fof the construction and arrangement thus-disclosed, since manychanges'may be made valve assembly to be disposed more centrally ofwithout departing either from the spirit of my invention or from theappended claims.

For example, Fig. 10 shows an embodiment of my invention in which thefloat lever extends through an upright slot 20 in the reservoir wall 1(below the bottom 3 of the reservoir) and is limited in its downwardswinging by engagement with the lower end of this slot. This allows thethe reservoir, the float-engaging formation on the pan being suitablyaltered as shown at 4 B, so that it will dispose a portion of theproperheight for engaging the float when the fountainis assembled.

I claim as my invention: I

1. A drinking fount comprising a well-forming base member, a waterreservoir detachably seated upon the said base member with the bottom ofthe reservoir spaced upwardly from the bottom of the pan, the reservoirhaving a discharge outlet in its bottom; and a valve mechanismcontrolling the said outlet; and riser means on the base member foractuating the said mechanism to open the said outlet when the reservoiris set into the base member, the valve mechanism also includes a floatserving to close the said outlet to a greater extent when the water inthe pan exceeds a predetermined level.

2. A drinking fount as per claim 1, in which the base member is a panhaving an upwardly formed bottom portion affording the said riser means.V

3. A drinking'fount as per claim 1, in which the base member is apanYhaving' an upwardly formed bottom portion affording the said risermeans, the said bottom portion being disposed for engaging the float.

4. A drinking fount comprising a well-forming base member, a waterreservoir having its lower end smaller in diameter than the base memberand having the said end normally seated on the said base member, thebottom of the reservoir being spaced upwardly from the bottom of thebase member, and the reservoir having a discharge outlet in its bottom;and a valve mechanism supported by the bottom of the receptacle, thebase member having a riser portion disposed for actuating the mechanismto open the said outlet when the reservoir is set down upon the basemember; and the mechanism including a float arranged for closing thesaid outlet when the container is lifted off the base member, and alsofor closing the said outlet when the level of water in the base memberreaches a predetermined height while the reservoir is positioned on thebase member.

5. A drinking fount as per claim 1, in which the lower end of thereservoir is of smaller diameter than the base membervand in which thebottom of the base member has a formation engaging the said lowerreservoir end to center the reservoir on the base member.

6. A drinking fount as per claim 1, in which the side wall of thecontainer extends belowthe bottom of the container and seats on thebottom of the base member, the portions of the valve mecha-',

nism below the bottom of the container being continually housed by thepart of the said side wall which is below the container bottom.

7. Means for controlling the discharge of liquid through a perforationin the bottom of a receptacle for the liquid, comprising an uprighttubular valve body extending through the said perforation, the bore ofthe valve body comprising a lower and upwardlytapering bore portion andan upper bore'portion of larger diameter than the upper end of the saidlower bore portion; a check valve ball'disposed in the upper boreportion and of larger diameter than the said upper end but "smaller indiameter than the upper bore portion; a vertically movable-valve memberhaving a tapering end'adapted to fit into the lower bore portion withthe tip'of that end projecting above the lower portion into the upperbore portion; a float lever connected to the said valve member, and apivoting member supportedby the receptacle bottom andserving to guidethe said valve member, the lever being pivoted on the pivoting member.

8. Liquid discharge means'as per claim 7, in

which the valve member has intermediate its ends a diametricallycontracted portion connected to the upper and lower parts of that memberby annular shoulders; and in which the lever-has a slot of lessdiameterjthan the exterior diameter of the said shoulders; through whichslot the said portionnormally extends; the slot also having anenlargement through which one end part of the valve member can beinserted, the said enlargement being normally spaced from the contractedportion of the valve member.

9. A drinking fount comprising a base member, a water reservoirdetachably supported by the said base member with the bottom of thereceptacle spaced upwardlyfrom the bottom of the pan, the receptaclehaving a discharge outlet in its bottom, a valve membercontinuously'urged by gravity to close the said .outlet,- and floatiloactuated means arranged for. lifting the said valve ,member out of itsclosure position and thereafter closing the outlet independently of thesaid valve member; the float-actuated means including a second valvemember adapted upon upward movement thereof to lift the first namedvalve member and thereafter close the said out-- let, and a floatdisposed between the bottoms of the container and the base member, alever sup porting both the float and the second valve member, and apivoting member fastened to the container and uponwhich the lever ispivoted, the

member out of its closure position and there- I after closing the outletindependently of the said valve member; the actuated means'includin'gasecond valve member adapted upon upward movement thereof to lift thefirst named valve memher and thereafter close the said outlet, and av Ifloat disposed between thebottoms of the con tainer and the base memberand operatively connected to the second valvemember; the bottom of thebase member. has] a'portion thereof disposed for engaging the float whenthe container is set into the base member to raise the float to anextent sufficient forlifting the first named valve member out of itsclosure position but insufficient forraising the second valve member toits closure position. I I p 4 e i DEWEY H. HILL.

